Your Spirit That Lies Within
by blackholeofexistence
Summary: Nyx Mismarrin lost her homeland in an Orc attack, and was soon sought out by Gandalf the Grey. He embarks her to join the quest to help the Dwarf Company win back their homeland, which lead to more things than just memories. (Kinda on hold, waiting for the last movie to come out)
1. Prologue

(Nyx is the girl in the cover photo)

**Prologue**

In a place by the name of the 'Shimmering Woods', there is but a race said to be lost behind means of stories and songs. In these woods they do so hide, using powerful magic to vanish from plain sight. These woods lay far from humanity, much to a young princess's dismay. The faery, or fey, wish to live in peace away from others with thoughts of greed and hatred. The King and Queen's daughter wished nothing more than to travel and stay far away, to a place where Dwarves, Humans and mysterious Wizards live. She remembered the time where her mother and herself had traveled to a most beautiful secret valley called Rivendell, where she met two twin boys that were all but friendly with her. That was many, many years ago and her heart longed to be rid of the Shimmering Woods for a good while.

Those wishes were long since gone four moons later.

Screaming and shouts came from all different directions as she fought her way through mobs of people that scrambled to run from the burning forest. Orcs ran at them from behind, tearing down fey who could not fly from their burning home. Nyx hitched an arrow in her bow and pulled back, sending it flying into the left eye of a nearby Orc. It simultaneously fell once the arrow hit home and the faery princess continued on. She used both her daggers and bow as she cut away a good chunk of Orcs that followed behind her kin. She made a vow when she was younger to protect anyone who needed to be protected and she intended to do just that. As she made her way back towards the burning kingdom in the trees, she sliced and cut at any enemy she came across.

Her eyes raced over faces and bodies as she searched for her mother and father, a small smile lighting up her grim expression as she watched her ever-so graceful mother cleanly cut off the head of a Orc that charged her.

"Mother!" She yelled to her. "Get to safety with the town folk, I'm going to search for father and help the remaining ones before we're all slaughtered and drove out!"

"Nyx, be careful!" The Queen cried back to her child.

With a curt down, the small princess ran and jumped out of the way of other fey, searching for her father through the chaos around her. She didn't dare unfold her wings in fear of them being ripped from her back when she saw her father. He was about 200 yards away, battling it out with the leader of the Orc Park. He looked to be winning as she ran forward, but her heart stopped in her chest as she watched the Orcs blade slice across his stomach. He was knocked back where he continued to lay in wait for the Orc to finish him off, but it never came. Nyx had ran with all her might to where the beast was and smashed into him with two heavy slices to its leg. Her blades twisted around in her skillful fingers and she stabbed at his unprotected chest, landing both blows into his heart. She sneered up at the thing before she removed her blades from where they were lodged and watched as it dropped to the ground. Seconds after, she rushed to her father and took his dying body in her arms. Tears streamed down her flushed cheeks as she held him close to her in the now almost empty clearing. The Orcs and her kin had both fled.

"Father, I'm so sorry," the princess whispered.

"Do not be sorry, my dear child. You made me proud today, I know you'll be a most wonderful queen one day. Just like your mother,"

He moved to try and smile but was interrupted by a fit of coughing, in which mouthfuls of blood spat up. Nyx shed more tears as she watched him give a bloodied smile before his life faded away in front of her eyes. Her slender fingers brushed over his eyelids and closed them before she placed a gentle kiss on his forehead. She stood up proud and tall, snatching up her own blades along with her father's sword and his crown. The fire the Orcs had set raged closer as she began to walk away, her small form slowly leaving behind her home.

She sought out to find where her kin and mother ran off to for safety. She passed by giant trees and green bushes, flowers and stones. She passed the daring houses of town folk and the gates that led into the once safe sanctuary of Ramoth inside the Shimmering Woods. Each thing she passed got her silent goodbye and wish of goodluck. Everything inside the forests would be destroyed by fire, even the forest itself. There would be no returning for the fey: No rebuilding, no growing up in a land of their own, no forgetting. The race would have another deep, dark page in history, one that told of them not belonging anywhere. Forever would they be known as wanderers.


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

After countless moons of wandering about and trying to keep every remaining fey fed, Queen Gelisin and the princess found refuge in the secret valley of Rivendell. Nyx didn't stay for very long after arriving, instead she sought out to trek all the way back to her homeland to see what remained of it.

When she arrived back at Rivendell some time later, Queen Gelisin was horrified. Her once gorgeous daughter had various scars, cuts, burns and bruises. She had a black eye, a scar running straight across the middle of her face (including over her nose), along with burns around and near her collarbones. The clothes she wore were ripped to shreds, the only things on her company being her daggers and bow. Her once flawless, figured body was now broken and so skinny that one was able to see her ribcage.

"Nyx, my precious girl! What happened to you?" Queen Gelisin cried, cupping her daughters face.

The Queen was torn when her daughter stared up at her. The princess who was always full of joy, mischief and smiles was now absolutely silent. The two stood there for quite a long time until the small blonde collapsed into her graying mothers arms. Immediately, tears were being shed from the striking blue eyes that the princess possessed. She clung to her mother for dear life as the steady flow of tears went on for hours.

"Mother, I went back," she sniffed.

"What did you find?" The Queen whispered softly.

"It… It's all gone, everything… Everything was burned and there's just nothing left. I found where fathers ashes were," she blinked away more tears and reached into her pocket, pulling out a handful of rings and necklaces.

The Queen frowned deeply, a couple stray tears slipping down her cheeks as she picked up her husbands wedding band. She held it between her fingers for some time before she clenched onto it and pulled her daughter closer.

"Thank you for bringing it back," she murmured to the princess.

Nyx was ordered to stay at Rivendell until she was healed. By the time she was fully healed, she was already getting back into her normal self, but more reckless. More times than once she tested out her mothers trust and boundaries, only to be sent back to her room for more rest.

On this particular day, Nyx was out and about in the valley of Rivendell. She was shrunken down to a small size and had her wings out for a much needed stretch. Her small form zoomed to and fro with splashes of glitter and sparkles, leaving a trail of faery dust wherever she flew. Quite a few Elves were fascinated by her actions and high spirits and so they sat by, observing her energetic nature.

Elrond, the Lord who lived in Rivendell, came to sit beside Queen Gelisin as she watched her young child zip about and giggle like a toddler. A smile rested across her face as she held tight to the ring that was 'round her neck on a chain.

"The Wizard, Gandalf, is on his way here to ask your precious daughter on a quest. Apparently he heard all about young Nyx defeating those Orc packs and Goblin holds by the Shimmering Wood. He's quite interested in her skill," Elrond murmured to the Queen.

The graying Queen looked over at him, "What is this quest?"

"That, is something that I have yet to discover, but we know that it involves a large group,"

Queen Gelisin nodded as her eyes followed the various trails of faery dust that littered around the air in the large courtyard. Nyx was nowhere to be seen, but a flash of gold appeared near the path that led into the secret valley and Elrond confirmed her question with a nod. Gandalf was already arriving in Rivendell and Nyx was on her way to greet him.

Gandalf was a large Maiar, a great Wizard and at first he intimidated the fey princess. She stayed in her small faery form and hovered in front of his face, boldly introducing herself.

"Hello, Mister Gandalf. I'm Nyx, princess of the fey," she chirped enthusiastically.

"Well, hello indeed, young Nyx. I'm afraid you're a lot smaller than I originally thought, but you'll still do quite nicely," Gandalf smiled.

With a small giggle, Nyx was back at normal height and without her wings in one quick flash. Gandalf gave a look of surprise but it was gone as quickly as it came and was replaced with a large smile.

"Now that's more like it! Although, you could have been even a bit taller," he observed.

Nyx wasn't offended in the slightest by his comment, she just smiled cheekily up at him and bounced on the balls of her feet.

"So, what brings you here, Wizard?" The princess asked.

"You," he replied simply, causing her eyebrows to raise in question.

"Me?"

"Why, yes. You see, I am putting together a quest with a company of Dwarves, a quest that requires the perspective of a woman. A woman who… Has certain traits, such like yourself. Of course, they may be insensitive towards women, especially you since you're more than a whole head shorter than them. You and I won't be the only non-Dwarves traveling, however.

There is another one, a Hobbit. He's going to be our Burglar for the whole quest and you can more than likely help him too. More or less if you choose to allow them all to know that you're a princess of the fey." He explained, telling her more once she began asking questions.

The sound of the quest made her glow with excitement. She clapped her hands fast, a small tumble of dust falling when her fingertips met one another. A small squeal left her lips as she twirled about, nodding her head fast.

"Why, of course! That sounds fun, and it would mean I can get away from Rivendell for awhile! Elladan and Elrohir left shortly after I arrived, so I've had no one to joke around with," she pouted.

Gandalf couldn't help but chuckle at the very energetic faery princess, a twinkle in his eye.

"You will find yourself in the company of another set of brothers, whom I'm sure you will get along with well," he chuckled.

The two slowly made their way down the steps into the city of Rivendell, all the while talking about where she was to meet and when. By that evening, Gandalf was gone once more and Nyx was putting together her pack.

Queen Gelisin sat on a chair in the room, watching as her daughter got all her things together, including food. A smile graced her features as she gazed at her. In the time that she rested and healed, she lost the discolouring of bruises and filled out nicely once again. She looked exactly like a princess with her honey blonde hair pulled off to the side in a braid, flowers knitted all throughout it. She wore a light blue dress, the fabric unevenly cut and messily stitched together. It hung loosely from her body and swirled about as if she were dancing. The Queen let out a soft sigh as she thought about how much her daughter looked like her when she was her age.

"Mother, I'm finished. I must be leaving soon," she murmured softly.

Once more, the Queen stood up and approached her daughter, unshed tears in her eyes. Gently, she took Nyx's arm and softly repeated a spell, where when it was finished, their family crest was born into the flesh of her wrist. The princess smiled up at her mother and pulled her into a tight embrace, kissing her cheek softly before they broke apart. From inside a pocket where her breast lay, Nyx brought out a necklace, made purely out of gold, and placed it into her mothers hands. The necklace had a charm on it, which looked like a locket except for it was see through and made out of a piece of gem. Inside it was a small vile of faery dust, along with a bit of purple swirls.

"It's my faery dust and magic, just a bit of course. It'll be here even when I'm not," the blonde smiled.

Tears spilled down the Queens pale cheeks and she hugged her child once more, holding her close against her until she protested and wished to be on her way. Reluctantly, the mother let go of her child and backed up. Giving one last smile, a small flash of light lit up the room and rays of colour filled up all around the faery Queen. She silently watched as her daughter took on her faery form and sprouted wings, causing faery dust to dust upon everything nearby. With a small wave, the small faery was gone and the Queen was left alone in the large empty room.


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

Three days later, exactly at supper time, Nyx arrived at the house of a Hobbit. Bilbo Baggins, the one who lived under The Hill and down in his comfortable Hobbit Hole. Bilbo Baggins had no idea that she would be arriving, so when she rang the doorbell, the Hobbit stood there in disbelief as he saw her.

"Good evening, Master Baggins. Nyx Mismarrin at your service," she grinned, bowing swiftly.

She had long since changed out of her dress and now wore boots made of hide, normal clothing and a cloak that covered her face behind a dark shadow. Bilbo sputtered for words as she pried the cloak off and revealed her face.

"Excuse me, but I don't recall us ever meeting -," The Hobbit began, only to be cut off by this strange new arrival.

"That's quite alright, Mister Baggins. Do you have any cake or tea? I traveled far to make it to Hobbiton," she grinned, trugging into his Hobbit hole with muddy footwear.

Bilbo sucked in a sharp breath when she walked on his floor with her muddy boots and went to protest until the doorbell rang once more and she disappeared into the kitchen. He could hear the kettle water being poured into a cup and he frowned.

On opening the door, Bilbo Baggins learned to find that a Dwarf was standing on his front step with an almost completely bald head except for long black hair that fell behind him and off his face. The Hobbit was quite shocked to find the Dwarf there and went to say something until the man spoke.

"Dwalin, at your service," he said rather politely, bowing in greeting.

"Hm. Uh…." He began before doing up his house coat, "Bilbo Baggins, at yours,"

The Hobbit was startled when the Dwarf moved inside his door and threw off his cloak.

"Do we know each other?" Bilbo inquired.

"No," Dwalin said simply.

Bilbo stood there in discomfort and confusion until Dwalin spoke once again.

"Which way, laddie? Is it down here?"

Bilbo stuttered, "Is what down where?"

"Supper. He said there'd be food and lots of it,"

"He- He said? Who said?"

Upon entering the kitchen, Dwalin gave a hearty laugh as he saw Nyx sitting on the edge of the sink, a cup of tea in one hand and a cake in her other.

"Ah, it's you. Was wonderin' if you were gonna get here alright,"

The faery gave a lopsided grin and shrugged her shoulders before taking a bite from her cake. She met most of the Dwarves coming on the journey the day after she left Rivendell, a few (like Dwalin) warmed up quickly to her while others hesitated because of her magical abilities and how she could shrink and unfold her wings.

"Never underestimate a lady, dear Dwalin," she chuckled.

"I don't see no lady here, nothin' but a pigheaded lass," the older Dwarf joked.

Dwalin got down to work on eating Bilbo's supper that sat on the table untouched. He was almost done the fish when Nyx refilled her tea.

"Mmm, mmm. Very good, this. Any more?" He asked, his mouth half full.

Bilbo blinked, "What? Oh, yes, yes. Ah. Help yourself,"

He lifted up a plate of cakes or scones (which ever they may be) and took one off the top before setting the plate down on the kitchen table. Dwalin immediately took one and shoved it in his mouth.

"Hmm. It's just that, um, I wasn't expecting company," Bilbo said, trying to sound nice.

Just then, the doorbell rang once again.

Dwalin looked up at him, "That'll be the door."

At the door was another Dwarf with long white hair, along with a long white beard. He seemed quite friendly and he gave Bilbo a smile.

"Balin, at your service," He said while still smiling, only bowing when he said the second part of his line.

Bilbo looked on in disbelief and stood there, saying blankly, "Good evening."

"Yes. Yes, it is." Balin replied. "Though I think it might rain later."

"Hm?"

"Am I late?" Balin asked, giving the Hobbit a serious expression.

"Late for what?" The Hobbit asked back, confusion written on his face.

"Oh! Ha, ha!" Balin exclaimed, "Evening, brother."

Dwalin was reaching inside a jar with more cake inside as Nyx laughed from behind him, watching with an amused expression. The first Dwarf to arrive looked over and began to chuckle along with his brother.

"By my beard…" he started, "...you're shorter and wider than last we met."

"Wider, not shorter," Balin corrected with a smile. "Sharp enough for both of us."

They both started to laugh and grabbed onto one another, staring at each other a few moments before headbutting one another. Nyx couldn't stifle her laughter and she erupted into a fit of tears as she held onto her stomach, the only sound leaving her that of strangled breathing.

"Uh, excuse me? Sorry, I hate to interrupt. But the thing is, I'm not entirely sure you're in the right house," Bilbo tried to say.

Into the pantry the two Dwarves went, the faery trailing along with an mug. They began to look around, while Dwalin filled up his own mug full of ale or wine, which ever was in the barrel.

"Have you eaten?" Dwalin asked Balin.

Balin replied to Dwalin, but Nyx wasn't able to hear him over the continuing of Bilbo Baggin's polite attempt at asking them to leave.

"It's not that I don't like visitors. I like visitors as much as the next Hobbit. But I do like to know them before they come visiting,"

"What is this?" Dwalin asked as he picked something up.

"I don't know," Balin said, "I think it's cheese. Gone blue."

"It's riddled with mold."

Bilbo again tried to continue, "The thing is, I don't know either of you. Not in the slightest. I don't mean to be blunt, but I had to speak my mind. I'm sorry."

"You think-?" Balin tried asking, only to stop mid sentence.

The two Dwarves looked towards the Hobbit while Nyx watched in amusement still, her blue eyes looking between both parties. Bilbo cleared his throat.

"Apology accepted," Balin replied back with a smile.

"Now, fill it up, brother, don't stint," he continued on to Dwalin.

"You wanna get stuck in?" Balin said as the doorbell rang for a fourth time.

"I could eat again if you insist, brother," Nyx heard Dwalin reply as she moved to stand in the hallway so she could watch Bilbo greet the next Dwarf or Dwarves.

Upon opening the door, Bilbo whimpered and made a face of complete discomfort.

Behind the door stood two Dwarves, one with blonde hair that had various braids (even his moustache had braids on it) and another one with brown hair that had no braids and a light skiff of a beard.

"Fili," said the blonde.

"And Kili," said the brunette.

"At your service," the two said in usion.

Nyx giggled lightly before taking a sip of her ale and watching with a small smile.

"You must be Mr. Boggins," Kili smiled, causing Nyx to almost fall into a fit of laughter once again.

"Nope! You can't come in, you've come to the wrong house," Bilbo exclaimed, trying to close the door.

"What?" Came the brunettes reply, pushing the door open once again with a look of disbelief, "Has it been canceled?"

"No one told us," Fili piped in.

"No, nothing's been canceled," Bilbo said, shaking his head.

"That's a relief,"

Kili shoved open the door and barged inside the house, Fili following in right after his younger brother. The blonde began to take off his weapons and shoved them into Bilbo's arms.

"Careful with these. I just had them sharpened,"

"It's nice, this place," Kili observed.

"Yeah," Fili agreed.

"Did you do it yourself?"

"What? No, it's been in the family for years,"

Kili winked over at Nyx before he began to scrape the mud and gunk off the bottom of his boots on what looked to be a box, a grin plastered to his face.

"That's my mother's glory box. Can you please not do that?" Bilbo raised his voice slightly.

In the middle of Kili scraping off his boots, Dwalin appeared in the doorway and nodded at Nyx to come over.

"Fili, Kili. Come on, give us a hand,"

"Mr. Dwalin. Ha, ha," Kili grinned.

"Shove this in the hallway. Otherwise we'll never get everyone in," Balin told Kili and Fili as they entered the dining room.

Nyx began to set the tables that they had began to drag in so that everyone would be able to sit together and eat. She made a place for everyone she knew would be arriving and then went to refill her ale since Fili drank the rest of hers with a kiss to her cheek.

"'Everyone'? How many more of you are there?" Bilbo exclaimed.

"Where do you want this?" Dwalin asked Balin.

A fifth time the doorbell rang and Bilbo seemed to pale.

"Oh, no. No. No. There's nobody home!" He bellowed.

"Go away and bother somebody else! There's far too many Dwarves in my dining room as it is. If this is some clot-head's idea of a joke…" he laughed bitterly, "...I can only say that it is in very poor taste."

Bilbo opened the door once again, but instead of one or two Dwarves standing there, a whole group of them fell inside and tumbled all over one another. Behind them stood Gandalf.

By the time every Dwarf was inside Bilbo Baggins Hobbit hole, too many things were going on at one time. They tried to help Nyx set the table, to move furniture around, to put food on the table or tell one another what needed to be done. Bilbo was in absolute distress as he ran around.

"Those are my pri-! Excuse me, not my wine. Put that back. Put that back." The Hobbit exclaimed to various different Dwarves.

"Not the jam, please. Excuse me. Excuse me!"

One of the Dwarves (a rather fat and round fellow) was walking past Bilbo with two or three cheese wheels in his hands.

"It's a tad excessive, isn't it? Have you got a cheese knife?" Bilbo called after him.

Another Dwarf came up behind Bilbo carrying a goat leg and grinned a tad.

""Cheese knife"?" He asked, "He eats it by the block."

Two more dwarves came by carrying chairs and the poor Hobbit rushed up to them.

"No, that's Grandpa Mungo's chair- No, so it that. Take it back, please,"

"I cannot hear what you're saying," one said.

"It's an antique. Not for sitting on," Bilbo explained.

Bilbo went around like that for a good while, not even paying attention when the only girl in the whole house began to swirl her fingers and began to pick up after the ever so messy Dwarves. Gandalf smiled at her while he watched as she went around, chuckling when he watched her every so often brush Kili's hair from his face as she passed him when he carried pieces of furniture.

After running around like so for a bit, Nyx stopped Dori and took a cup of chamomile tea so she could have a little bit to drink as she snapped, swished and pointed her fingers for all different sorts of things. More times than she would have liked she had to fix a piece of furniture one of the men dropped.

Nyx followed after Fili and Kili incase they dropped the barrel of ale when she heard Gandalf begin ticking off who all was there.

"Nyx, Fili, Kili… Uh, Oin, Gloin. Dwalin, Balin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur… Dori, Nori. Ori!" He named off, ticking his fingers each time he named a Dwarf .

Bifur wandered over and spoke to Gandalf in Dwarvish, telling him that Thorin was not yet there.

"Yes, you're quite right, Bifur," he agreed. "We appear to be one Dwarf short."

"He is late, is all. He traveled north to a meeting of our kin. He will come," Dwalin assured the Wizard.

Soon Supper was started and Dwarves were chattering rather loudly with one another. The faery princess was sitting beside Kili, more than stuffing her face. Eggs, bread, different assortments of meat… They all sat on her plate while she tried to wash it all down with a large gulp of her ale.

"Bombur, catch!" She heard from the end of the table.

Down at the other end, near where she sat quite close to, the ginger Dwarf caught an egg in his mouth and everyone erupted into cheers. Food was being thrown around the table and Nyx grinned as she passed a piece of bread to Nori, her mouth full of goat. Fili and Kili started up a conversation with her, completely awestruck by the way she was eating.

Minutes passed and Fili went to fill up mugs of ale, then began to walk on top of the table to bring them to everyone who wanted one.

"Who wants an ale? There you go,"

"Over here, brother," Kili called.

Nyx was laughing and spitting out great amounts of food with no shame whatsoever as she joined in on the great fun the Dwarves were having. She had never done something so rather disgusting nor exciting in her whole life, especially not when she had lived in the great house with the King and Queen.

"Ale on the count of three!" Bofur yelled.

"One, two…. Three! Up!"

Everyone, including Nyx herself, brought their mugs to their mouths and began to chug down what was left of their drinks. All around, Ale spilled down the Dwarves' beards and great slurping could be heard. Ale spilled over Nyx's mug also and spilled down her flushed cheeks, sloshing right into her shirt before she squealed into the remaining liquid and finished it off a cough. Nori began to belch, causing everyone to laugh and more Dwarfs to belch. Nyx was laughing along with everyone, not even caring about the ale that had spilled all over her breasts and made them wet and sticky. She began to hiccup and giggle loudly as Kili belched in her ear and Fili threw water against her.

After dinner was all done and finished, the Dwarves began to start cleaning up around poor Bilbo's home. He snatched a doily from one of the Dwarves, and had a small chat with Gandalf until one of the younger Dwarves came up to Bilbo with his plate.

"Excuse me. I'm sorry to interrupt, but what should I do with my plate?" Ori asked him.

"Here you go, Ori. Give it to me," Fili said as he walked up.

The blonde Dwarf grabbed the plate and threw it, where Kili caught it and threw it to Bifur, who caught it and began to wash. This went on with bunches of more dishes, while their faery friend watched with amusement.

In the Kitchen, some Dwarves began to bang and clash the forks and knives together, in which Bilbo protested.

"Ooh. Do you hear that, lads? He says we'll blunt the knives," Bofur taunted.

"_Blunt the knives, bend the forks,_" Kili began to sing.

_"Smash the bottles and burn the corks,_" Fili joined in.

_"Chip the glasses and crack the plates,"_ Everyone sang.

_"That's what Bilbo Baggins hates!_

_Cut the cloth, tread on the fat,_

_Leave the bones on the bedroom mat,_

_Pour the milk on the pantry floor,_

_Splash the wine on every door,_

_Dump the crocks in a boiling bowl,_

_Pound them up with a thumping pole,_

_When you're finished, if they are whole,_

_Send them down the hall to roll!_

_That's what Bilbo Baggins hates!"_

Nyx grinned as she helped the men sing their song, stealing plates from Kili and Fili as they too sang with everyone else. Plates actually rolled down the halls with a snap of the faery's finger and she gave a lopsided smile to the Dwarves who cheered.

When Bilbo entered the Kitchen, his mouth opened slightly agape as he saw all the clean, unbroken dishes in neat piles. The Dwarves gave chuckles and a few laughs, all until there was a pounding on the door.

Everyone got quiet as Gandalf looked up and moved his pipe from his mouth.

"He is here,"

On opening the door, Thorin Oakenshield stood behind it and turned his head to look at who was to greet him.

"Gandalf," he said, "I thought you said this place would be easy to find."

Gandalf had opened the door, while all the Dwarves piled up in the doorway to the Kitchen.

Thorin walked inside the home under The Hill and glanced at his Company, not noticing the female amongst them as she was pressed between Kili and Fili.

"I lost my way, twice. I wouldn't have found it at all had it not been for that mark on the door," Thorin continued while unfastening his cloak.

"Mark?" Bilbo questioned, "There's no mark on that door. It was painted a week ago."

"There is a mark. I put it there myself," Gandalf assured the Hobbit.

"Bilbo Baggins, allow me to introduce the leader of our company: Thorin Oakenshield."

"So this is the Hobbit," Thorin said, "Tell me, Mr. Baggins, have you done much fighting?"

"Pardon me?" Bilbo sputtered.

"Ax or sword? What's your weapon of choice?"

"Well, I do have some skill at conkers, if you must know… But I fail to see why that's relevant,"

"Thought as much. He looks more like a grocer than a burglar," Thorin concluded, causing the Dwarves to all chuckle.

The leader of the company turned and faced the woman, eying her as Fili pressed in close against her. An eyebrow raised in question and Thorin nodded his head at her.

"And who are you?"

"Nyx Mismarrin at your service, daughter of the late King Aeron and Queen Gelisin," she chirped, bowing in greeting.

"Are you here to waste my time also?" He asked.

"Not really, I know how to use weapons and I have various traits that could be of use. Gandalf sought me out all but three days ago," she replied.

Thorin seemed pleased with the answer and continued on into the kitchen, where Nyx fixed up a bowl of soup, mugs of ale and a plate of cakes, setting them all down on the kitchen table. She took one of the mugs and sat with Fili and Kili, curling up near them as she listening to the conversation.

"What news from the meeting in Ered Luin? Did they all come?" Balin asked.

"Aye. Envoys from all seven kingdoms," Thorin replied between mouthfuls of soup.

"All of them!" Exclaimed Balin.

"And what did the Dwarves from the Iron Hills say?" Dwalin put in, "Is Dain with us?"

Thorin took in a deep breath and looked at everyone in front of them before replying, "They will not come."

Some murmuring sounded from a few of the Dwarves and Thorin continued, "They say this quest is ours and ours alone."

"You're going on a quest?" Bilbo asked quietly from behind Gandalf.

"Bilbo, my dear fellow, let us have a little more light," Gandalf told the Hobbit.

"Far to the east, over ranges and rivers, beyond woodlands and wastelands, lies a single, solitary peak," Gandalf said as he pulled out and laid down a map.

""The Lonely Mountain."" Bilbo read off as he brought over another candle.

"Aye, Oin had read the portents and the portents say it is time," Gloin said.

"Ravens have been seen flying back to the mountain, as it was foretold," Oin began, ""When the birds of yore return to Erebor, the reign of the beast will end.""

Bilbo had turned around and made to busy himself until he heard mention of 'the beast'. Quickly, he turned back around and with a worried look, asked, "Uh, what beast?"

"That would be a reference to Smaug the Terrible, chiefest and greatest calamity of our age," Bofur replied before continuing, "Airborne fire-breather. Teeth like razors, claws like meat hooks. Extremely fond of precious metals."

"Yes, I know what a dragon is," Bilbo quickly interrupted.

"I'm not afraid. I'm up for it," Ori exclaimed as he jumped up from where he sat, "I'll give him a taste of Dwarfish iron right up his jacksie!"

"Good lad, Ori!"

"Sit down,"

"The task would be difficult enough with an army behind us but we number just thirteen," Balin explained, "And not thirteen of the best, nor brightest."

"Here, who are you calling dim?" A Dwarf yelled.

"We may be few in number," Fili began, "But we're fighters, all of us, to the last Dwarf."

"And you forget, we have a Wizard in our company. Gandalf would have killed hundreds of dragons in his time," Kili quickly followed.

Gandalf started, "Oh, well, no. I wouldn't say-"

"How many, then?" Dori asked.

"What?"

"Well, how many dragons have you killed?" Dori corrected himself.

Gandalf began to cough as another Dwarf called out, "Go on. Give us a number."

Nyx squeaked in alarm as all the Dwarves got up and began to shout at one another indistinctly, causing her to shrink back into her chair to not get in the way of any of them. When Thorin bellowed something loudly in Dwarvish, the shouting Dwarves quickly sat right back down in their seats. Fili nudged Nyx softly to let her know he was right there since she had closed her eyes.

"If we have read these signs, do you not think others will have read them too?" Thorin said to them, "Rumors have begun to spread. The dragon, Smaug, has not been seen for 60 years. Eyes look east to the mountain, assessing, wondering, weighing the risk. Perhaps the vast wealth of our people now lies unprotected.

Do we sit back while others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor?"

The Dwarves began to cheer at their leaders words, only to be quieted by what Balin said next, "You forget, the Front Gate is sealed. There is no way into the mountain."

Gandalf reached into his pocket and pulled out a key, twirling it between his fingers as he answered back to the Dwarf.

"That, my dear Balin, is not entirely true,"

"How came you by this?" Thorin asked in disbelief.

"It was given to me by your father. By Thrain. For safekeeping. It is yours now,"

The key was slowly passed over to Thorin and he gently took it in his grasp, staring down at it with a far away look.

"If there is a key, there must be a door," Fili said.

"These runes speak of a hidden passage to the Lower Halls,"

"There's another way in," Kili smiled, wrapping an arm around Nyx and his brother.

"Well, if we can find it, but Dwarf doors are invisible when closed," Gandalf sighed, "The answer lies hidden somewhere in this map, and I do not have the skill to find it. But there are others in Middle Earth who can."

"The task I have in mind will require a great deal of stealth, and no small amount of courage," Gandalf continued, "But if we are careful and clever, I believe that it can be done."

"That's why we need a burglar," Ori pointed out.

"Hmm. And a good one too. An expert, I'd imagine," Bilbo piped in.

"And are you?" Gloin asked.

Bilbo looked around and then behind him, as if the Dwarf had not been talking to him.

"Am I what?"

"He said he's an expert!" A Dwarf sitting by Fili exclaimed with a thrilled smile.

"Me? No. No, no, no. I'm not a burglar. I've never stolen a thing in my life,"

Balin sighed, "Well, I'm afraid I have to agree with Mr. Baggins. He's hardly burglar material."

"Nope,"

"Aye, the Wild is no place for gentle folk who can neither fight nor fend for themselves," Dwalin agreed.

"He's just fine," Kili argued loudly.

More chattering started up and this time Nyx joined in too, agreeing with Kili that Bilbo was just fine to be the burglar for their quest.

"Enough! If I say Bilbo Baggins is a burglar, then a burglar he is. Hobbits are remarkably light on their feet. In fact, they can pass unseen by most, if they choose. And, while the dragon is accustomed to the smell of Dwarf, the scent of a Hobbit is all but unknown to him ,which gives us a distinct advantage.

You told me to find the fourteenth member of this company, and I have chosen Mr. Baggins. There's a lot more to him than appearances suggest. And he's got a great deal more to offer than any of you know. Including himself. You must trust me on this," Gandalf exclaimed and told the company, his eyes on Thorin.

Thorin stayed silent for a brief moment before replying, "Very well, we will do it your way. Give him the contract."

"No, no,"

"We're in, we're off,"

"It's just the usual. Summary of out-of-pocket expenses, time required, remuneration, funeral arrangements, do forth," Balin explained, handing the contract to Thorin who handed it to Bilbo.

"Funeral arrangements?" The Hobbit asked, gaffled.

Bilbo sighed as he undid the contract and began reading over it, his eyes never missing a word.

"I cannot guarantee his safety," Thorin whispered to Gandalf.

"Understood," The Wizard replied.

"Nor will I be responsible for his fate," Thorin continued on.

"Agreed,"

""Terms: Cash on delivery, up to but not exceeding one-fourteenth of total profit, if any." Hmm, seems fair. "Present company shall not be liable for injuries inflicted by or sustained as a consequence thereof, including, but not limited to lacerations, evisceration"… _Incineration_?" Bilbo exclaimed.

"Aye. He'll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye," Bofur answered him.

"You alright there, laddie?"

"Yeah, just feel a bit faint,"

"Think furnace with wings,"

"Air, I need air,"

"Flash of light, searing pain, then poof. You're nothing more than a pile of ash,"

Bilbo tried to take air into his lungs and not think about what Bofur was saying to him, but he slouched and then stood tall, only to slouch again.

"Nope," He decided, falling onto the rug with a thud.

"Oh, very helpful, Bofur," Gandalf sighed.

Nyx wandered off to the bathroom to clean up after Bilbo Baggins fainted and fell to the floor, and she only returned after him and Gandalf had talked. Her hair falling loosely down her back as she adorned a different set of loose fitting clothes. She wandered over to where a steaming tea cup sat and picked it up, having a small sip as she sat down and listened as the Dwarves began to hum a song.

_"Far over the misty mountains cold,_

_To dungeons deep,_

_And caverns old,"_

Kili stood in front of Nyx and she reached forward, grabbing hold of one of his hands as she listened to Thorin sing, a lump forming in her chest. Her small fingers squeezed his hand softly and she leaned her head against his back when she felt him squeeze back.

_"We must away,_

_'Ere break of day,_

_To find our long-forgotten gold._

_The pines were roaring on the height,_

_The winds were moaning in the night,_

_The Fire was red, it flaming spread,_

_The trees like torches blazed with light,"_

After everyone said goodnight and went to their rooms with their bunking partners, Kili carried Nyx down to where them and Fili were bunking. The brothers said that she could share a room with them, but she had fallen asleep shortly after the company had sung their song and she had shed a few tears.

The faery awoke when Kili laid her down on the bed and she sleepily sat up, rubbing her eyes. Slowly she pried off her boots and crawled underneath the bed sheets as she waited for the blonde and brunette to join her. The two of them crawled in with the girl, immediately falling asleep as she hummed a gentle tune to them.

It took quite a long time before she herself could fall asleep again. She wasn't put off by the two boys who shared the bed with her, even when Kili buried his face into her honey hair and Fili stretched an arm over her. The song that the company had sang was what bothered her, for it reminded too much of what happened to her homeland. The fire was what her shed her tears.

She tried to think about her mother and how she wasn't doing her usual mediation, which helped her to slowly drift off in a soft slumber with dreams of being back in the Shimmering Wood, her father giving her archery lessons like he did when she was a young girl.

When the brothers awoke the next morning, Thorin and Gandalf were standing over top of them. One had an expression of disapproval and the other with a smile and twinkle in his eye. Almost immediately they understood why and both of them began to flush a light pink. Nyx was laying between the two of them, locked underneath Fili's strong arm and with Kili's hand tangled in a fistfull of her hair. The two tried to quickly move away but Kili forget to untangle his fingers from curls and he tugged quite hard on the locks, startling her away.

"Sorry!" The brunette cried, slowly unraveling his fingers from her hair.

"It's okay," She yawned, crawling out of the bed.

She quickly dressed in her traveling wear after Thorin and Gandalf left the room, then left the two boys to clean up as she went for a quick bite of breakfast. Bilbo was nowhere to be seen, causing her to frown and shake her head as she took a piece of bread and a bowl of porridge, silently eating it in the corner of the room. By the time everyone was finished eating, the sun was just beginning to rise through the trees of the meadow and Thorin said it was time to leave.

One after another, the Dwarves, Maiar and Faery left the Baggins residence and started their journey. Not many people were awake during this hour, so the streets leaving were quiet and deserted, much to their liking. Nyx walked in between Kili and Fili, who were bickering to one another about being safe on the journey. After a good five minutes of that, she hit both of them in the arm.

"Shut up," She hissed.

The two of them went to say something but with one look they both shut up, turning their attention to look into the passing woods as they neared where they kept their ponies.

"Nyx, do you have a pony or not?" Thorins booming voice came from ahead.

"Nope," she responded nonchalantly.

"Kili, Fili, let her ride with one of you," he instructed.

Thorin was angered that his nephews were so easily able to warm up to the princess. He didn't like the way that she carried herself, how energetic she was. She was probably reckless and tended to do things her way, and he saw it was a threat to his Company.

Gandalf sometimes has no idea what he's doing, Thorin thought.

Thorin bristled at the sound of Kili's voice and turned to find him flirting with the small princess.

"Would you care to ride upon my pony, dear princess?" He grinned cheekily.

Thorin watched as the girl laughed at his nephews attempt to get her close to him and instead climbed on top of Fili's pony with his help. Thorin would have smiled at his nephew being turned down by the 'fair lady' if no one would have been looking at him.

The other Dwarves began to tease Kili for his failed attempt at flirting with the lass and he glared at them before he turned back to his pony and continued to saddle it up for the long ride. Fili and Nyx slowly walked by him on their pony and the girl reached out, ruffling the angered Dwarf's brown hair.

"I'll ride with you after we stop next," she promised softly.

Kili turned slightly to look up at her and she was smiling down at him, a gentleness in her striking blue eyes as she looked down at him. The brunette smiled back at her before the pony went up to stand by Gandalf's horse.

"You wounded his pride," Fili chuckled from behind her.

"I'm not so easily won over," she told him softly.

"I am sure he'll learn that in due time," he replied..

"I said it. Didn't I say it? Coming here was a waste of time," Dori complained,

"That's true enough," Gloin agreed.

"Ridiculous notion. Use a Hobbit? A halfling? Whose idea was it anyway?"

"Wait!" Cried Bilbo, "Wait!"

"Whoa, whoa," Thorin said, stopping his pony at the front of the line.

"Bilbo!" Nyx exclaimed, "How wonderful of you to join us!"

One by one the ponies came to a stop and waited for Bilbo, who ran up to where Fili, Kili, Balin and Nyx had stopped, the contract clenched in his hand.

"I signed it!" He gasped, "I signed it!"

With a smile, Balin took the contract and replied, "Everything appears to be in order. Welcome Master Baggins, to the company of Thorin Oakenshield."

Bilbo was given a smaller pony to ride, his baggage attached to her as he rode in amongst the dwarves, a hood and cloak on his company. Nyx was happy that he had finally arrived and now sat on Kili's shoulder for she had shrunk to her faery form, and she leaned just slightly against the curve of his jaw. The brunette seemed to be quite happy about the turn of events for he didn't seem so gloomy like he had been before. Both Nyx and himself were silent as they rode with the others, but he was content with the way she played with his now clean hair that he had washed that morning.

Kili thought that she was an odd little creature. She did things differently than most did and he found himself drawn to her in curiosity. After a while, she flipped down from his shoulder and returned to normal height in his lap. A light blush spread over his slightly tanned cheeks as she leaned back into him and fell asleep.

Thorin and the rest of the Company glanced back at the two, each with a different look upon their bearded faces. Bilbo was curious about the female companion the group had and found himself glancing back at her quite often. Each time he looked back, he found something new about her features and actions. While she slept he saw that she either held onto Kili's arm or grasped his hand in hers, which always resulted in his cheeks heating. Bilbo also noticed that she had very plump lips, high cheekbones, perfectly cropped eyebrows and she sported quite a few scars across her pale face. One of the most noticeable ones was a scar that ran across her cheekbones and nose in a perfectly straight line. Other ones were smaller and took awhile for him to find, like the ones that sprinkled across her chin and at the edges of her hairline. The Hobbit also noticed that her honey coloured hair was naturally curly and framed her face, hanging all the way down to just below her breasts.

"Come on, Nori. Pay up," Oin called, waking up Nyx slightly.

"One more," Kili called and he too was passed a coin purse.

Nyx was awake long enough for her own coin purse to be thrown to her, only for Kili to catch it and slip it into her pocket for her.

Bilbo's mind wandered back to the faery's scars and he wondered how she got them which led him into thinking of many, many different scenarios in his head between his small bits of complaining and to the time when they stopped for the night.


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

Fili and Kili were on watch by the fire when Nyx woke up, shaking and sweating from a nightmare. She felt chilled in her thin clothing which made her get up from where she had been laying and venture over to where the two brothers were. She was shivering when she sat away from them, her whole body shaken from the terrible dream. Kili and Fili both watched her as they tried to stitch and sharpen things, glancing between each other.

"Nyx, come sit with us," Fili called.

Silently, the honey haired girl stood and walked over, plopping herself between the two brothers after they moved over just a bit for her. She sighed softly, looking out at the vast open land before Bilbo caught her eye. He must have had trouble sleeping since he was awake and walking towards where his pony was standing. Screeching in the distance came and she sneered, leaning into Fili as he lounged against the stone in the hill smoking a pipe.. His arm wrapped protectively around her.

"What was that?" Bilbo asked, turning to the two Dwarfs and the faery.

"Orcs," Kili answered.

"Orcs?" Bilbo asked.

"Throat-cutters. There'll be dozens of them out there. The lone-lands are crawling with them," Fili murmured.

"They strike in the wee small hours when everyone's asleep. Quick and quiet, no screams. Just lots of blood," Kili added on.

Bilbo sucked in a deep breath and looked out into the lone-lands, while the two brothers started chuckling. Nyx sat up and hit them both hard in the arm, unshed tears welled up in her eyes as the image of her father being killed swamped her mind.

"You think that's funny?" Thorin asked, "You think a night raid by Orcs is a joke?"

"We didn't mean anything by it," Kili told him, looking down.

"No, you didn't," he scolded, "You know nothing of the world."

Nyx gave a deep sigh and crawled over to Kili, her arms wrapped around him and she settled there. She said nothing to him, just looked up at his face with sorrow clear in her deep blue eyes. Her right hand ventured to find a spot on his left arm that had no armor on it and she squeezed the spot gently.

"Don't mind him, laddie. Thorin has more reason than most to hate Orcs," Balin said as he came over to stand by the three youngers.

"After the dragon took the Lonely Mountain, King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient Dwarf kingdom of Moira. But our enemy had got out there first. Moria had been taken by legions of Orcs, led by the most vile of all their race: Azog the Defiler. The giant Gundabad Orc had sworn to wipe out the line of Durin.

He began by beheading the King. Thrain, Thorin's father, was driven mad by grief. He went missing. Taken prisoner or killed, we did not know. We were leaderless. Defeat and death were upon us. That is when I saw him, a young Dwarf prince, facing down the pale Orc. He stood alone against this terrible foe, his armor rent, wielding nothing but an oaken branch as a shield.

Azog the Defiler learned that day, that the line of Durin would not be so easily broken. Our forces rallied and drove the Orcs back. And our enemy had been defeated. But there was no feast nor song that night for our dead were beyond the count of grief. We few had survived. And I thought to myself then, there is one who I could follow. There is one, I could call King," Balin told them, his eyes sweeping from the young Dwarf princes to the Dwarf King.

Everyone was awake now and standing about, staring at Thorin. Kili kept an arm around the faery princess, an understanding swelling in his heart as he took in the newfound knowledge about his Uncle and the rest of his kin.

"What about the pale Orc?" Bilbo asked, "What happened to him?"

"He slunk back into the hole whence he came," Thorin answered, "That filth died of his wounds long ago."

Everyone was returning to sleep when Fili and Kili looked into the woods that sat near the Company. Nyx slowly stopped moving as her ears picked up the sound of someone running through the woods, causing her to jump to her feet. She checked to make sure she had her blades and then took off running, jumping up into a tree and disappearing from sight.

The brothers stood up and slowly made their way to the edge of the tree line, weapons at the ready as they gazed inside at the dark forest. The two walked the line for a couple minutes, glancing towards each other with unsure expressions. Kili gave a startled cry as he was jumped on and shoved to the ground, the tip of a blade digging into his skin. Fili went to run forward in aid to his brother when Nyx jumped from from a tree and landed on the attacker, knocking him clean off Kili. Her blades swiftly left their shealth and she held them to his neck, only for a soft gasp to leave her lips as she saw his face.

She would never have recognized him from a distance, his hair was too short for her to see it as him. Her blades were slowly pushed from her hands and he hugged her tightly, his face burrowing into her neck. Silent tears spilled down her cheeks as she hugged him back, her hands reaching up to cradle the top of his back and the back of his head.

Nyx remembered when she first met him, how he was training to be a Captain of the Guard. He always kept his hair nicely tied back in a braid, his bangs falling slightly forward. That was until he made it to be Captain 2 years later. After that, he kept his hair shorter and allowed it to hang loose.

For a long time after that, Nyx would often go on hunting parties with him or he would have to go find her whenever she ran off. The two made a strong friendship in the 6 years they knew each other.

"I thought you were dead," the princess whispered.

"And I thought you were dead," he replied back.

At the sound of his voice, she slowly began to crumble and break. Strangled sobs escaped her and she began to shake, her head burying into his neck.

"Finn…" She whispered, "What happened to you? Why didn't you leave with the rest of the Guard?"

A frown fell upon his features and he slowly sat up, keeping the faery princess tucked in his lap. He never even acknowledged the stares the two Dwarf brothers were giving him, all he did was keep his eyes on Nyx, afraid that she was going to disappear.

"I went looking for you. Just before the attack happened you had ran off and I went to find you when I saw the flames. I was worried that they had gotten you, that you were killed," he murmured. "Some time after that, I went to find your mother at Rivendell and she told me that you had ran off on a quest. I came to find you, I couldn't wait around for you to come back."

The princess stared at him, her hands balling into fists as her cheeks began to heat up with anger. Without any warning at all, she began to hit at him until she shoved herself away and got up, fury in her eyes.

"You had no right, Finley. No damn right. You hurt my friend,"

She walked off and over to where Kili still lay, his eyes watching her with confusion. Upon looking at him, her gaze softened gradually and she sat on her knees beside him. She kicked away Finley's blade and helped the brunette out of his coat, her hands gently getting to work on cleaning and binding the wound.

It was obvious that the faery was at a point where she couldn't keep her walls up for long, especially to the two brothers. After binding Kili's arm, she burst into tears without a second of warning, causing Kili to pull her in close to him. Fili went off to find a mug of ale to help calm her nerves, leaving behind the three of them.

"I suggest you leave," he snarked to Finley.

The Captain of the Guard just sat there and watched as the Dwarf stood up with Nyx, her small hands clinging to him as if he was the only thing that could save her in the world.

The next day, the princess distanced herself from everyone except Gandalf. She was in her faery form, sitting tucked inside the Wizard's collar. The Wizard and her had a talk that morning, and he had sent for their Elven friend, Aryia.

A disgusting downpour was in the process, however, and everyone was sopping wet. Bilbo Baggins looked more than unimpressed by the sheer notion of being rained upon.

"Here, Mr. Gandalf, can't you do something about this deluge?" A Dwarf called from behind.

"It is raining, Master Dwarf, and it will continue to rain until the rain is done," Gandalf told them, "If you wish to change the weather of the world, you should find yourself another Wizard."

Everyone sighed and continued forward. Fili and Kili weren't talking to one another over an argument the two had earlier that morning, Nyx wasn't talking to either of them, Thorin seemed to be angered from the night before still and all-in-all, the rain just proved to sour everyone's mood even more.

"Are there any?" Bilbo asked.

"What?"

"Other Wizards,"

"There are five of us. The greatest of our order is Saruman the White. Then there are the two Blue Wizards," Gandalf said, "Do you know, I've quite forgotten their names."

"And who is the fifth?" The Hobbit questioned.

"Well, that would be Radagast the Brown,"

Nyx poked her head out from Gandalf's collar at the mention of Radagast and she crinkled her nose slightly as a few raindrops fell on her.

"Is he a great Wizard? Or is he more like you?"

Gandalf bristled slightly at what Bilbo said and the faery flicked him.

"I think he's a very great Wizard, in his own way. He's a gentle soul who prefers the company of animals to others. He keeps a watchful eye over the vast forest lands to the east. And a good thing too, for always evil will look to find a foothold in this world."


	5. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

After the rain stopped, the Company came to a halt so that the ponies could rest and they could have a small bite to eat. Nyx wasn't at hungry when the Dwarves sat down to fill their bellies, so she zoomed about and went off to find herself some animal friends.

The princess was still furious with the brothers, their argument angering her more and more each time she thought about it. A couple times that day they had tried to apologize to her, only to have faery dust thrown in their faces when she flew off.

In the woods she found herself talking to a young rabbit and her skunk friend. They were surprised to learn that she was a faery and able to understand them.

"Are you with the Dwarves sitting just beyond the trees?" The rabbit asked.

"If you are, why aren't you sitting with them?" The skunk questioned too.

Nyx smiled at the both of them, "Yes, I am with those Dwarves. I'm choosing to distance myself from them for the time being, two of them made me angry first thing this morning."

"Is it one of those two?" Squeaked the Skunk.

Looking behind her, Nyx found Fili walking into the woods and gently calling her name while the Dwarves behind him began talking about having a woman traveling with them.

"I don't understand why we'd need a 'womans perspective'," Bofur huffed.

"Aye, neither do I. We've never needed one in the past, so why should we have one now?" Nori agreed.

At the choice of topic, yelling broke out between two different sides of Dwarves. Half of them said that having Nyx around was fine and that she proved herself as useful while the other half said they didn't need her and were better off just leaving her behind. The yelling only stopped once Thorin got involved.

"Enough!" He bellowed, "Stop arguing over a woman who can prove herself more useful than half the lot of you. She may be a woman, but she still deserves respect, which she has done nothing but give to all of you."

Fili was back with the Company and listening to Thorin chew them out yet again. After all was said and done, Kili and him apologized to each other. The faery, skunk and rabbit watched as the scene unraveled before them and the animals frowned.

"Do they not know that you can hear them?" The rabbit asked.

"I don't know, little one. They're going to be furious when Aryia arrives though,"

"Who's Aryia?" A voice from behind her asked.

At the sound of the voice, she was back as herself once again and petting the two little animals gently. Kili came and sat beside her, chewing his bottom lip slightly.

"Aryia is an elf, she lives in Rivendell. I would have left on this quest with her had she not been gone with Lord Elrond's sons. She's a smaller elf, though, so she won't tower over you and your lot of friends," she replied stiffly.

Kili began to frown and touched Nyx's leg gently.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "Fili and I were stupid this morning."

"It's okay," She replied.

"We're leaving soon,"

"That's great, means I can be left alone,"

"What?" Kili asked, disbelief in his tone.

"I don't know if I want to travel with you Dwarves anymore, clearly having a woman along is terrible for all of you,"

"Who cares what they want? What matters is that Fili and I, including Gandalf and more than likely Mr. Baggins, we want you coming along," The brunette man exclaimed.

Later that day, the Company (including Nyx who sat with Kili) had arrived at an old farm. The faery didn't like the way the farm gave her the chills, but she stayed quiet as they came to a stop.

"We'll camp here for the night," Thorin called to them.

"Fili, Kili, look after the ponies. Make sure you stay with them," He ordered his nephews.

The two nodded and Nyx gracefully dropped down from Kili's pony, landing on the balls of her feet. She began to help unload the ponies, making a small camp by putting everyones stuff down.

"A farmer and his family used to live here," Gandalf observed.

Thorin continued to give everyone a job, "Oin, Gloin. Get a fire going."

"Aye," Oin replied.

"I think it would be wiser to move on," Gandalf told Thorin, "We could make for the Hidden Valley."

"I told you already," Thorin replied gruffly, "I will not go near that place."

"Why not?" The Wizard demanded, "The Elves could help us. We could get food, rest, advice."

"I do not need their advice,"

"We have a map that we cannot read. Lord Elrond could help us,"

"Help? A dragon attacks Erebor. What help came from the Elves? Orcs plunder Moria, desecrate our sacred halls. The Elves looked on and did nothing," The Dwarf fumed quietly, "And you ask me to seek out the very people who betrayed my grandfather. Who betrayed my father,"

"You are neither of them," Gandalf told him, "I did not give you that map and key for you to hold onto the past,"

"I did not know that they were yours to keep,"

Thorin had pushed the old Wizard's buttons for Gandalf turned around and began to walk away, undoubtedly angered.

"Everything all right? Gandalf, where are you going?" Bilbo questioned.

"To seek the company of the only one around here who's got any sense,"

"And who's that?"

"Myself, Mr. Baggins," the Wizard raised his voice before lowering it, "I've had enough of Dwarves for one day."

Thorin stared after the Wizard, "Come on, Bombur. We're hungry."

"Is he coming back?" Bilbo asked Balin who gave him an uncertain look.

Supper was ready and everyone was in the middle of eating when Nyx finished her bowl of soup off first. Bilbo had been instructed to bring soup to Fili and Kili, in which Nyx wanted to accompany him. On the short walk over, the faery and Hobbit stayed quiet and just enjoyed one anothers company. Nyx wore a content smile, Bilbo wearing a grim expression.

When the two walked up to the lads, they were standing with their backs to them and staring towards where the ponies were to be. They had grim expressions on their face too and didn't look at either of the new arrivals.

"What's the matter?" Bilbo and Nyx asked in usion.

"We're supposed to be looking after the ponies," Kili said.

"Only we've encountered a slight problem," Fili mentioned after.

"We had 16," Kili continued.

"Now there's 14," Fili finished.

Kili went and named off the ponies in which they still had with Nyx, while Fili stood by a stump trying to figure out why only two ponies would be gone and how they would have went missing.

"Daisy and Bungo are missing," Kili told the two.

"Well, that's not good. Ha, ha. And that is not good at all. Shouldn't we tell Thorin?" Bilbo stuttered at first, his hands still holding their soup.

"Uh, no. Let's not worry him. As our official burglar, we thought you might like to look into it," Fili said.

"Well, uh… Look, something big uprooted these trees," Bilbo pointed out.

"That was out thinking," Kili agreed.

"It's something very big and possibly quite dangerous," Bilbo continued.

Fili and Nyx looked around the tree a little bit and both pointed when they saw something.

"Hey," Fili whispered, "There's a light. Over here,"

They rushed over and stayed hidden behind one of the fallen trees with Kili's 'Stay down,' comment. As they looked towards the light, loud grunting and laughter could be heard. Nyx crinkled her nose in disgust.

"What is it?" Bilbo asked.

"Trolls," The brunette clarified.

The two lads and lass quickly jumped over the fallen tree and ran forward, not bothering to wait for Bilbo. When they got to cover behind another tree, they pressed against it and held back as they observed.

When Bilbo finally met up with them, he still had their soup and was pressing up against the tree.

"He's got Myrtle and Minty!" Bilbo exclaimed in a whisper as a troll carrying two ponies walked by. "I think they're gonna eat them. We have to do something,"

In usion, the brothers looked over at the Hobbit.

"Yes, you should," Confirmed Kili, "Mountain Trolls are slow and stupid, and you're so small, they'll never see you.

Bilbo went to protest but the brunette continued, "It's perfectly safe. We'll be right behind you,"

The lads began to take their soup from Bilbo and Nyx frowned at them. She wasn't going to let Bilbo go in alone, he was much too inexperienced.

"If you run into trouble, hoot twice like a barn owl and once like a brown owl," Fili instructed.

As Bilbo tried asking them questions, Nyx began prying off her coat and extra wear that she knew would slow her down. She made sure that her blades were in easy reach and she stood behind Bilbo, clamping a hand onto his shoulder.

"Alright, lad, off we go," She whispered, shoving her clothes off to the brothers.

They stared at her in bewilderment and went to protest when she shoved Bilbo forward and started up behind him in a crouch.

"Twice like a barn owl. No, twice like a brown- One like a- Like a- Are you sure this is a good idea?" Bilbo dawned on, turning around.

He was greeted with just the girl behind him: Kili and Fili vanished.

"Button yesterday, mutton today and, blimey, if it don't look like mutton again tomorrow," They heard one of the trolls saying.

"Quit your griping, these ain't sheep. These is fresh nags," Another one snipped.

"Oh! I don't like horse. I never have. Not enough fat on them,"

"Better than leathery old farmer. All skin and bone, he was. I'm still picking bits of 'em out of me teeth,"

When Bilbo and Nyx came into view of the Trolls and horses, they saw that three Trolls sat by a fire. Nyx cursed her ancestors and patted Bilbo on the back before she disappeared into some bushes and started making her way towards the Trolls. She'd have to act as a distraction.

One of the Trolls sneezed right into the pot they had on the fire, "Well, that's lovely, that is. A floater."

"Oh, might improve the flavour,"

"Ah, there's more where that came from,"

One of them began to try and hoark up a glob of snot when he was grabbed by the nose and swished about.

"Oh, no you don't! Sit down,"

Nyx watched as Bilbo finally made his way to the horses and tried to pry the rope off with his bare hands, only to no avail. The clock in his head must have been working nicely since he got sight of the makeshift knife on the hip of the Troll who had troubles with his nose.

Bilbo seemed to be contemplating things until he finally began making his way forward and towards the Troll. Nyx knew he must have been scared, nervous, and she respected that. In case he needed her help, she slowly unsheathed her blades and held them at the ready in case of the situation where Bilbo needed help sprang up.

Nyx probably jinxed it, for as she watched Bilbo try and get the makeshift knife, he was caught up in the snotrag one of the Trolls used, resulting in him having snot blown all over him. Nyx stared in disgust as she told everything in her body to not move.

A scream sounded from the Troll who blew his nose on Bilbo, "Blimey! Bert. Bert! Look what's come out of me hooter! It's got arms and legs and everything!"

"What is it?" Bert asked as all three Trolls gazed at Bilbo.

"I don't know. But I don't like the way it wriggles around," The first one replied, throwing Bilbo to the ground.

Bilbo quickly stood up and stared with a look of alarm as the one called Bert brandished a large stick for a weapon.

"What are you, then? An oversized squirrel?" It demanded.

"I'm a burglar- Uh, Hobbit," Bilbo corrected himself.

"A burglar Hobbit?" The second Troll asked.

"Can we cook him?"

"We can try!"

That was Nyx's que and she ran out, giving a glorious battle cry which would make any warrior jealous. She stood in a fighting stance before the Trolls and brought their attention upon her as Bilbo ran from them.

"Over here, ya stinky oversized rats!"

She caught their attention for only a mere second before they had Bilbo in their grasp. She cursed once again and ran forward, her blades being put away in case she was grabbed too. She ran up and climbed all the way to the head of one of the Trolls, knocking it's head back so it fell backward just slightly. All she heard as she kicked the Troll in the face was Kili come running from the woods and demand they drop Bilbo.

Kili was knocked back as Bilbo was thrown on top of him and that was when the rest of the Company ran out, weapons ablazing. Nyx took out one of her blades and stabbed it into the Trolls shoulder before she jumped off and landed amongst the fighting that broke out. The Trolls squealed, kicked and thrashed about as the Dwarves and faery began to give them a beating. Nyx weilded only a blade as she stabbed, jabbed and cut away at the legs and feet of the ugly beasts, a wild grin on her face.

She moved with the fighting, grunts of her own escaping until she heard the yells of one of the Trolls, "Get the sacks! Stick them in the sacks!"

Kili ran across the Troll camp and knocked Nyx down before she was smashed by a Troll foot. He quickly helped her up and together they fought side-by-side, slashing at anything remotely looking like Troll. Nyx jumped up onto Kili's shoulders and slashed at the face of one of the disgusting creatures. She landed gracefully beside Kili once more and they continued on, getting the attention of one of the Trolls as Bilbo grabbed the knife- finally!

Bilbo quickly set the ponies free while Fili cut at Bert's arm, forcing him to drop Ori. Without a second to think, the Trolls had Bilbo by the arms and legs.

"Bilbo!" Kili yelled, only to be stopped by Thorin.

"Lay down your arms!" Bert yelled. "Or we'll rip his off!"

Everyone unwillingly set down their arms and soon everyone was in sacks and being either tossed aside for later or put on a poorly made rotunda.

"Oh! That's hot, that's hot, that's hot!" Nyx hard Nori yell.

Nyx was horribly embarrassed. The Trolls took everyone's clothes off before they stuck them in their own sack, but she was oggled not only by the Dwarves but by the Trolls too. They almost didn't want to cook her, until she kicked one in the eye. Kili not only was baffled by the faery's body, but by the fact that she had two massive scars running down her ribcage and a horrible burn scar on her left leg. She was thrown in amongst Kili, Thorin and a few other Dwarves.

"Don't bother cookin' 'em, let's jus' sit on 'em an' squash 'em into jelly," One suggested.

"They should be sauteed and grilled with a sprinkle of sage," Bert told them.

"Is this really necessary?" Balin yelled.

"That does sound quite nice,"

"Untie me, mister,"

"Eat someone your own size!"

"Never mind the seasoning, we ain't got all night. Dawn ain't far away, let's get a move on. I don't fancy being turned to stone,"

"Wait!" Cried Bilbo, "You are making a terrible mistake!"

"You can't reason with them. They're half-wits!"

"Half-wits? What does that make us?"

Bilbo stood up in his sack and hopped forward until he was quite close to the fire.

"I meant with the seasoning,"

"What about the seasoning?" Inquired one of the Trolls, bending over so he could look right at Bilbo.

"Well, have you smelt them? You're gonna need something stronger than sage before you plate this lot up,"

"Traitor!" Bombur yelled.

"You all don't smell that bad," Nyx murmured.

"What do you know about cooking Dwarf?"

"Shut up,"

"Let the flurgaburburhobbit talk,"

"The secret to cooking Dwarf is…"

"Yes? Come on, Tell us the secret,"

"It's, uh… Yes, I'm telling you. The secret is… To skin them first!"

Roars of outrage came from the group of Dwarfs and Nyx cursed once again. The Hobbit was going to be bloody brilliant or get them all killed by dawn.

"Tom, get me filleting knife,"

"I'll skin you, you little-!"

"I won't forget that! I won't forget it!" Dwalin yelled.

"What a load of rubbish, I've eaten plenty with their skins on. Scarf 'em, I say, boots and all,"

Nyx could see the sun rising behind a rock and a smile graced her features. She saw Gandalf quickly pound up behind the Trolls in the cover of the trees.

"He's right, nothing wrong with a bit of raw Dwarf,"

Bombur was picked up and hung dangerous close to the Trolls mouth, startled grunts coming from him.

"Nice and crunchy,"

"Oh, not that one. He's infected," Bilbo exclaimed quickly.

"Huh?"

"You what?"

"Yeah, he's got worms, in his… Tubes,"

"Eww!"

"Aah!" Bombur exclaimed as he was thrown back onto the pile, landing on Kili and Oin.

"I- In fact, they all have...They're infested with parasites. It's a terrible business. I wouldn't risk it, I really wouldn't," Bilbo shook his head.

"Parasites? Did he say "parasites"?" Oin asked.

"We don't have parasites. You have parasites!" Kili yelled, causing Nyx to hit him at the same time as Thorin.

The brunette grunted at the hits and turned to look at Thorin. Everyone was quiet for a mere few seconds until the yelling began again.

"I've got parasites as big as my arm!" Oin yelled.

"Mine are the biggest parasites! I've got huge parasites!" Kili yelled too.

Nyx had to do everything in her power to not laugh as Kili yelled about how big his parasites were, until she joined in too.

"I'm riddled," Kili continued.

"Yes, we're riddled!"

"Yes, we are, badly,"

"What would you have us do, then? Let them go?"

"Well…"

"You think I don't know what you're up to?" The Troll questioned, jabbing a fat finger into Bilbo. "This little ferret is taking us for fools."

"Ferret?"

"Fools?"

Nyx was more than relieved when Gandalf appeared, his voice lighting up her features as she wiggled about in the sack.

"The dawn will take you all!" The Wizard bellowed.

"Who's that?"

"No idea,"

"Can we eat him too?"

Nyx could see the sunrise behind Gandalf and she squirmed even more until the Wizard brought down his staff and split the rock in two. The Trolls immediately yelled out and tried to move away from the blinding sunlight but they slowly turned into stone.

Kili was the one to cut Nyx from her sack but instead of letting it drop like everyone else, she held it around herself with a light pink colour flushing her cheeks. Kili chuckled softly and held up her clothes to her with a grin. She took them and chewed her cheek before looking behind him. Fili walked up to them.

"Can you stand watch while I dress?" She asked them.

Upon agreement, the two brothers stood side by side to hide the girl from view as she redressed herself. It took all but seconds as she scrambled to pull her shirt and pants on, along with her boots. Once she was done, she began to tie her hair into a braid after kissing both their cheeks.

"Thank you," She smiled.

After everyone was dressed and armed again, they followed Thorin to the side of a hill where a cave lied. Gandalf led them down into it.

"Eugh, what's that stench?" Nori asked.

"It's a Troll-hoard," the Wizard replied. "Be careful what you touch."

The Dwarves began to cough and Nyx crinkled her nose in disgust, her hand reaching up to cover her nose. But a hand had beat her there and when she breathed in all she could smell was Kili. Oddly enough, she found herself holding his hand there with her own, causing him to lace his fingers between hers. Fili smiled as he walked ahead of them, entering deeper into the cave.

At the end of the cave sat a mountain of coin and jewels, along with other things that the Trolls must have taken a liking to. Nyx saw jewelry boxes, necklaces, amulets. The thing that stood out most to her, however, was the assortments of faery artifacts. She saw crowns made of ivory, rings are specially crafted gold and silver. She even saw necklaces in which children would give their parents or siblings, or just keep themselves for a special person. Nyx left Kili to go up to them and she found herself going through the many necklaces.

Dwarves began digging holes so they could bury their newfound loot, others looked at swords. The princess paid no attention, though. Unshed tears filled her eyes as she found a necklace, one with green faery dust and blue sparks inside. It was her brothers, Kailan's. She had no idea how those Trolls would have gotten it but she got up and made her way to the entrance, only for Kili to grab her hand.

"Nyx, wait. I found a bracelet and I thought you would like it," He smiled lightly.

In his hand he held a bracelet made of gold. It had a varying amount and different types of gems on it, but the ivory charm was what struck her. It was a sun and moon, carved perfectly into the ivory. A smile slowly made it's way to her lips and she hugged him before holding out her wrist.

"Thank you," she murmured, excusing herself.

Of course, he followed her up, but he went straight over to Fili and the two began talking. The faery stayed off to the side by herself for a while, admiring the way her brother made the necklace. She hadn't seen him in over 5 years, but she hoped he would turn up soon. Sighing heavily, she tied the necklace around her neck and made her way back over to the group.


End file.
